Partners in Life and Endurance
Stan and Chrissy Ferguson become the first married to complete the Grand Slam of Ultrarunning
By Amiee Maxwell
The Grand Slam of Ultrarunning recognizes those who complete the four oldest 100-mile ultra races in the country in a single season—California’s Western States, Vermont, Colorado’s Leadville and Utah’s Wasatch Front. This year was the first time a husband and wife have ever completed the Grand Slam in the same year.
Stan and Chrissy Ferguson met in 1995 at the Arkansas Traveller 100-miler in Perryville, Arkansas. Her usual pacer, Dave Cawein, was unable to run due to a torn calf muscle, so her introduced her to Stan, who was just getting into ultrarunning. “By the time I finished the race, I knew I was going to marry him,” Chrissy says of their first “date.” The two were married at the Traveller’s pre-race meeting the following year.
This personal history with the race led to them taking over the race directors’ reins in 2001 from Lou and Charley Peyton, who’d created the race 10 years earlier.
Stan (who celebrated his 46th birthday at this year’s Wasatch Front 100) and Chrissy, 48, make their home in Conway, Arkansas, which is just north of Little Rock, where Chrissy works as a firefighter and Stan is a software developer. They have a daughter Elizabeth Mezzanares, 22, and a two-year-old grandson, Hunter.
They first went after the Grand Slam in 2008 when they both won lottery spots for the Western States 100-Mile Endurance Run, which was later cancelled due to forest fires. Chrissy abandoned her Grand Slam quest after failing to finish Leadville that year, but Stan completed the Grand Slam after his own race, the Arkansas Traveller 100, was substituted for the cancelled Western States event.
Chrissy found the Leadville Trail 100 to be the hardest of the Grand Slam’s four races, but squeaked under the 30-hour time limit to finish in 29:36:04. “The time cut-offs are kind of tight considering how much the altitude can slow down a flatlander,” she says. Chrissy concedes that Wasatch (where she finished in 35:46:31) was a harder race because of its more technical terrain and slower pace, but she felt it was more doable thanks to its generous time limit. At Western States, she logged 29:29:00, and finished the Vermont Trail 100 in 29:36:04.
Stan was one of eight men to finish this year’s Grand Slam, running a 26:22:17 at Western States, 19:36:09 at the Vermont Trail, 24:43:55 at Leadville and 29:00:54 at the Wasatch Front 100.
Many ultrarunners rely on a spouse for race support, so as they both pursued the Grand Slam in 2009, Stan and Chrissy drew help from extended family and their many running friends. “We learned a long time ago that it's best if we aren't both doing the same 100-miler,” says Chrissy. “There's almost always some kind of stressor involved, and when you both feel it, things can get pretty tense.”
But when faced with the opportunity to do the Grand Slam, they decided it was worth the price. “We felt that being fully aware of the stress it would cause might help us deal with it better.”
When asked what they have planned for 2010, they agree it won’t be the Grand Slam. They plan to run North Dakota’s Lean Horse 100-miler on August 28 next year, as well as other ultras they haven’t done before.
For more information about the Grand Slam of Ultrarunning, visit www.run100s.com/gs.htm or the Arkansas Traveller 100, go to www.runarkansas.com/AT100.htm.
Going Long
New thru-hike speed record on Vermont’s Long Trail comes down to the wire
By Kyle Klingman
In September, Jonathan Basham set a new supported record of 4 days 12 hours 46 minutes on the Long Trail, the oldest long-distance hiking trail in the United States. It is approximately 272 miles and runs the length of Vermont from the Canadian border to the Massachusetts border.
On his run, Basham enlisted the help of two pacers, his wife, Hilary, and Andrew Thompson, who set the speed record on the Appalachian Trail in 2005 (covering 2178 miles in 47 days 13 hours 31 minutes) with a one-man crew: Jonathan Basham.
Basham and Thompson are best friends who have swapped crewing duties for every speed hike the other has attempted. Basham’s most recent record came in 2006 on the 500-mile Colorado Trail. But that record was broken by Paul Pomeroy in 2008, so Basham went after the Long Trail record hoping to eliminate “former record holder” from his name.
Thompson paced a few sections late in the hike but his primary duty was hiking necessary supplies into the trail for a backcountry camp. Previous record holders used road crossings as stopping points, which meant uneven mileage days. Basham and Thompson devised a plan that would split the trail into even sections.
They also chose September for this feat instead of June or July. Basham learned that the advantages of a fall hike are substantial when he failed to break the unsupported Long Trail record in September of 2008.
At 5 a.m. on Sept. 7, 2009, Basham left the Canadian Border near North Troy, Vermont, and for the first two days moved so fast that his pacers could barely keep up.
Near the end of day three, crew members calculated what it would take to get the record: for the final two days, Basham wouldn’t get much sleep and snagging the record would be very tight.
In what equates to a sprint to the finish, Basham broke Ted “Cave Dog” Keiser’s record by just 29 minutes. Impeccable planning, ideal weather conditions, an invested crew and Basham’s ability to overcome profound soreness and fatigue ultimately led to the successful record attempt.
“He knew each day was going to be really long and the terrain was going to be really brutal,” says Thompson. “You know you’re not going to break this by two hours. You know you’ll be dealing with minutes after five full days of hiking. His record is safely in the top three ultra-distance records.”
Despite breaking two records in two attempts, Basham wants more. He is already talking about breaking another trail record within the next two years.
“There are so many good things that revolve around speed hiking,” said Basham. “It’s what makes sense to me in this world. It’s what I understand. It’s where I find meaning in life. It’s an honest and pure lifestyle.
“The record means a lot but it’s more than the numbers because someday the record is going to be taken away. Having us all out there is what means the most.”
John Muir Trail Records Crushed by Rookie
Brett Maune bests both supported and unsupported records
By Amiee Maxwell
California’s John Muir Trail (JMT) stretches from the summit of Mount Whitney to Happy Isles in Yosemite Valley. The 211-mile trail has a total elevation gain/loss of 84,000 feet and passes through Yosemite, Kings Canyon National Park and the John Muir and Ansel Adams Wilderness.
Many chased the JMT’s fastpacking speed record last summer, but none was faster than Brett Maune. On September 6, 2009, Maune blew away the previous unsupported record held by Michael Popov by an astonishing 19 hours, setting a new record of 3 days 9 hours 58 minutes. His time also crushed Sue Johnston’s overall (supported) record by nearly six hours.
Maune, an unknown in the fastpacking community, has little experience moving fast and light on trails, but usually gets his outdoors fix climbing big mountains. On Maune’s first attempt to complete the entire JMT, in early August, he had to bail on the first day after making several “beginner” mistakes regarding pack weight, pace and nutrition. Consequently, he dropped his base pack weight and refined his nutritional plan for his second attempt.
Prior to his second attempt, he said on www.BackpackingLight.com, “This time though I plan to still complete the JMT even if another meltdown occurs. At the very least I want to experience what it's like to do the full thing as fast as one can. I'm looking forward to the sleep deprivation.” Maune pushed through the night, keeping his speedy pace despite exhaustion and hallucinations, and reached his goal.
Read Maune’s detailed trip report on Summit Post.
How the West Was Won
Scott Williamson and Adam Bradley smash PCT thru-hiking speed records
By Amiee Maxwell
On August 12, 2009, Scott Williamson, 37, and Adam Bradley, 37, reached the northern terminus of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) at the Canadian border, 65 days 9 hours 58 minutes after setting out from the Mexico border on June 8. By far the most remarkable PCT feat to date, Williamson and Bradley not only broke the unsupported speed record set in 2008 by Scott Williamson and Tatu Joe Kisner by six days, but they also surpassed David Horton’s 2005 fully supported speed record by 21 hours.
In 2005, David Horton was the first person to run the entire 2650-miles PCT trail, which passes through California, Oregon and Washington, in 66 days 7 hours 16 minutes, beating the previous record set in 2003 by 17 days. He did so in a “fully supported” style with a support crew setting up his camp each night and carrying his food, water and gear.
What makes Williamson and Bradley’s record-setting adventure so amazing is that they bested Horton’s fully supported running record by hiking, and with no outside support. Unlike Horton, the two hiked into town to refuel and pick up resupply packages they had mailed in advance, thereby adding 20 miles to their trip.
Williamson, of Truckee, California, is no PCT novice, having already completed the PCT 11 times and was the first to complete a “yo-yo” of the trail in 2004, walking from the Mexican border to Canada and back in 197 days. Williamson has become so recognizable on the PCT that he often wears a disguise (funny glasses or a bandana). Though he enjoys socializing with fellow hikers, the attention slows him down.
Bradley, of Reno, Nevada, starting thru-hiking in 2001, on the Long Trail, and since then has completed the Appalachian, Tahoe Rim, John Muir and Arizona trails; in 2007, on the latter, he set a record of 30 days 7 hours 30 minutes (which has since been bested by Matt Signore).
Trail Runner recently spoke with Bradley about his PCT record with Williamson.
Scott has a reputation as being elusive—what was it like hiking with him?
Most people identify Scott by a 2004 article in Backpacker Magazine that talks about him getting shot in the face while working at a convenience store [and describes several other tragic events in his life]. But I enjoyed getting to know him for real. He’s actually an honest, dependable, loyal guy with a lot of heart. When we finished, Scott said, “No way I could have done it alone.”
How much distance did you cover in a day?
We averaged 40.5 miles a day, with 28 miles being our shortest day and 51 miles the longest. We usually hiked for 14 hours a day and recovered by getting off our feet, eating and getting quality sleep.
What was the hardest stretch of the PCT?
The first 700 miles are very grim, because we were hiking through sand and crossing under highways while skirting the Mojave Desert. Most hikers don’t make it to the Sierras. And Scott almost quit two days from the finish because he was battling the flu and looked so bad that other hikers would stop us and ask if we were going to make it. I wished these people would have instead told us to tear it up.
What does it mean that you completed the trail “unsupported”?
We didn’t ride in cars or hitch to resupply towns—our feet essentially did not leave the ground the entire course of the trail. We chose resupply points that were closest to the trail, but four times we had to go six days between re-supply trips.
How did you support each other during the hike?
Having another person along for the entire hike is different than someone who comes out to support or hang with you for a few days. Scott and I experienced the same highs and lows for 65 days. It buoys your emotions to share the experience with someone else.
How did you prepare for the PCT?
Last spring I started running as training [for thru hiking], which also saved me time. Instead of walking 40 miles over 14 hours, I’d run for 45 minutes. Running kept me in shape and left me time to plan the logistics for the two-month trip. Also, running hardens up the feet, which other forms of training, like snowshoeing, do not.
What trail will you do next?
Now that I know I can walk 51 miles in a day, I’m curious to know what I could do without a pack on my back. I’d like to run the 165-mile Tahoe Rim Trail and the PCT, and want to return to the Arizona Trail. I haven't yet set a firm date, but it is on my shortlist for this spring. I want to reclaim my record as I am competitive and know I can go well below the record [which is now 28 days 22 hours].
Follow Adam Bradley’s journeys on his new blog, http://krudmeister.blogspot.com/ |
Crescent Moon Gold Series 12 
The detachable binding system essentially gives you two products in one: a lightweight snowshoe that provides floatation on snow, plus detachable traction system ideal for running on hard-packed snow or ice. The binding straps take a little more effort to adjust than Crescent Moon’s but can accommodate any shoe size from women’s 5.5 to men’s 14. We enjoyed the option of running with or without the deck (the stainless-steel cleats click easily in and out of the deck), during runs through varied terrain and snow conditions. 
